TRENTON – A Lacey Township man was sentenced in Trenton federal court on Feb. 5, to 7 years in prison – 84 months – in prison for distributing images and videos of child sexual abuse.
U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito reported that 38-year-old Michael A. Ruggiero, who previously served as a corrections officer had pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Peter G. Sheridan.
Ruggiero was charged with one count of distribution of child pornography and Judge Sheridan imposed the sentence.
Some of the images and videos were of prepubescent children or children who had not attained the age of 12.
He also received over the same mobile chat application other images and videos of child sexual abuse, and he possessed additional depictions of child sexual abuse on his cell phone at the time of his June 2017 arrest. The judge sentenced Ruggiero to five years of supervised release in addition to the prison sentence.
Carpenito credited special agents of the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Brian A. Michael; inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Postal Inspector in Charge Daniel B. Brubaker, Philadelphia Division; and members of the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer with the investigation leading to Ruggiero’s sentencing.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Elisa T. Wiygul of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Trenton represented the government while the defense counsel was New York attorney Telesforo Del Valle, Jr.
